Knife.



No. 870,678. PATENTED NOV. 12, 1907.

J. H. HENSON.

KNIFE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 29. 1907.

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JOHN H. HENSON, OF OOOLEY, OKLAHOMA TERRITORY.

KNIFE Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 12, 1907.

Application filed January 29. 1907- Serial No. 354|74=4nl To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, John H. HENsoN, a citizen of theUnited States,residing at Cooley, in the county of Woodward and Territory of Oklahoma,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Knives; and 1 dodeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to knives or pruning implements in which it isoften desirable to vary the position or location of the cutting edge fordoing more rapid and effective work.

The object of the invention is to provide a device of this kind whichcan be quickly changed to secure the aboveu-esults and at the same timeto so construct the parts that they are as rigidly secured in oneposition as they are in the other.

In the accompanying drawingsz-Figure 1 is a side elevation, partlybroken away, showing my improved knife with the blade in one position infull lines and the opposite direction in dotted lines; Figs. 2 and 3 arebroken side elevations, showing the knife blade in reversed positionrelative to the handle; Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view, takenat right angles to Fig. 2;

. and Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the invention whenprovided with a socket for the reception of a handle.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, which are for illustrativepurposes only, and are therefore not drawn to scale, 1 indicates thehandle of my improved knife, which may be of any suitable material andof the proper size and length to adapt it for use. The upper end of thehandle is preferably bent laterally and pro- Ivided with a socket, whichis provided with three openings, one of which 2 bpens longitudinally ofthe handle and the other two 3 and 4 open laterally for the reception ofthe shank 5 of the blade 6. The shank of the blade is reduced relativelyto the base or inner end of the knife blade so as to form shoulders 7and 8 that are adapted toengage with the portion of the handle adjacentto whichever opening is occupied by the shank of the blade. The inner orcutting edge 9 of the blade is preferably curved and especially towardits base where it forms a substantially curved shoulder 10 that isadapted to be forced into engagement with the object being acted uponwhen the handle is being pushed forward lengthwise. The socketed end ofthe handle is provided with transverse perforations 11, through which isadapted to be extended the pin 12, the intermediate portion of the pinpassing through a perforation 13 in the shank of the blade and therebyrigidly holding the blade in position.

The perforations 11 and 13 in the handle and shank I respectively are soarranged relatively to each other that whenever the shank is insertedinto the handle through any one of the openings therein the openings inthe handle and shank will register, so that the pin can be passedthrough them and thereby holdthe parts in position. .ln other words, theperforations 11 are located exactly midway between the sides of thehandle and at a point from the end of the handle equal to the distancefrom either side to said opening, and the perforation in the shank islocated exactly midway of its width and at a distance from the shouldersequal to the distance that the perforations in the handle are from theends and sides of the handle respectively.

In using my improved knife, the blade is inserted in the handle inaccordancowith the use for which the knife is intended. For instance, ifthe blade is to be used in a narrow or close place it is inserted in theend of the handle with either side extending to the right or left, asshown in full lines and dotted lines in Fig. 1, the blade beinginvertible and reversible. If a draw or thrust cut is to be made wherethere is plenty of room the blade is inserted into either side of thehandle with the cutting edge either up or down as the case may be, theblade being reversible in the side openings the same as it is for theend opening. After the blade has been inserted as far as it will go, thepin is inserted through the perforations and the knife is in conditionfor use.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that the blade can occupy either oneof six positions, two of which are shown in Fig. l and it being evidentthat it can occupy two upon either side.

Instead of forming the handle from one piece and forming the sockets inthe end thereof, the socketed portion can be in the form of a metallicshell or body 14, as shown in Fig. 5 with its opposite end formed into asocket for the reception of a handle that can be made removable orstationary in the ordinary manner, if desired, and its intermediateportion can be bent at an angle in the same manner as shown in the otherfigures.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:-

In a knife, a bent body having a handle at one end and a socket at theother, said socket being arranged 1ongitudinally of the body and havingoppositely disposed openings communicating with its bottom, and thewalls of the socket being each provided with a perforation, saidopenings being of the same cross sectional areas as the socket and theperforations being midway between the sides of the body and at adistance from the outer end equal to the distance from the perforationsto either side, and an invertible and reversible blade havingits innerend reduced to form a shank and shoulders, the shank being ofsubstantially the same area in cross section as the socket, or saidopenings, and adapted to fit therein, and also perforated midway of itswidth and at a distance from said shoulders equal to the distance fromthe perforations in the body to the outer end, or to either side, andthe cutting edge of the blade being curved from its tip to the shoulderupon the forward side of the shank,

and a pin adapted to be passed through the perforations in the body andthe perforation in the shank when the latter is seated within the socketor in either of said openings.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

JOHN H. HENSON.

Witnesses L. H. PATTON, BERTHA Gmsuon.

